More Than 100,000 Americans Died Due to Drug Overdose in 1-Year Period for the First Time, CDC Reports

A Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) chemist pours 2,500 packs of confirmed fentanyl onto a counter for testing at the DEA Northeast Regional Laboratory in New York on Oct. 8, 2019. Don Emmert/AFP via Getty Images

More than 100,000 Americans have died of drug overdoses in the 12-month period ending in April, marking the highest number ever, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported on Nov. 18.

That’s a 28.5 percent increase over the previous year, with the total number of drug overdose deaths doubling over the past five-year recorded period.